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What Abdul Carter's Latest Injury Means for His NFL Draft Status

According to multiple reports, Carter was diagnosed with a foot injury at the NFL Scouting Combine.

Mark Wogenrich

Penn State defensive lineman Abdul Carter meets with the media during the 2025 NFL Scouting Combine at the Indiana Convention Center.
Penn State defensive lineman Abdul Carter meets with the media during the 2025 NFL Scouting Combine at the Indiana Convention Center. / Kirby Lee-Imagn Images
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Penn State's Abdul Carter won't have surgery for a foot injury diagnosed at the NFL Scouting Combine and still plans to run at Penn State's Pro Day in late March, according to multiple reports from Indianapolis. The injury was the latest piece of news regarding the potential No. 1 overall pick who believes he's the best player in the 2025 NFL Draft.

Agent Drew Rosenhaus told ESPN's Adam Schefter that Carter was diagnosed with a stress fracture in his right foot during medical exams at the NFL Scouting Combine. However, Rosenhaus also said that Carter would not require surgery and that the defensive end still plans to participate in on-field drills at Penn State Pro Day.

"I couldn't be more confident that this will be a non-factor where he's drafted," Rosenhaus told Schefter. "He will put on a show at his pro day."

The latest injury continued nearly two months of health news for the Big Ten defensive player of the year, who could become Penn State's first No. 1 overall draft pick in 25 years. Carter played through a shoulder injury against Notre Dame in the College Football Playoff semifinals, producing a two-sack performance in the Orange Bowl that he called one of his best games of the season. Before the Orange Bowl, Rosenhaus called Carter "one of the toughest human beings that I've ever been affiliated with" in an appearance on the Pat McAfee Show.

"I feel like I left it all out there," Carter said at the combine about his Orange Bowl performance.

Carter arrived in Indianapolis planning not to participate in combine drills, though he did conduct team interviews and undergo medical exams. Carter acknowledged meeting with multiple teams, including the Tennessee Titans, who have the No. 1 overall pick. Carter also said that he felt about "90 percent" recovered from the shoulder injury that he sustained in the Fiesta Bowl on New Year's Eve.

"I’m really just starting to heat it up right now," Carter said. "I just got cleared, really started training, started working out again. So my next couple weeks look like just me getting right, me getting ready for my pro day and once I get to my pro day to perform at an elite level."

The latest injury prompted Carter to return to the symbolic Star Wars meme he shared on social media before the Orange Bowl. Carter posted it again Thursday.

Carter's foot injury will increase interest in his Pro Day, scheduled for March 28 at Penn State's Holuba Hall. The event, usually well attended by NFL personnel, likely will bring even more of a media environment to campus. It also will continue the conversation regarding whether Carter is drafted No. 1 overall. Penn State has not had a No. 1 overall pick since defensive end Courtney Brown in 2000.

"Yeah, it’s very important for me," Carter said when asked about being drafted first. "That’s one of the goals I made before the season, something I always talked about. It’s what I worked for, and I feel like I’m getting close to that. Just got to keep working, keep putting the effort in and accomplish my dream."

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Mark Wogenrich
MARK WOGENRICH

Mark Wogenrich is Editor and Publisher of AllPennState, the site for Penn State news on SI's FanNation Network. He has covered Penn State sports for more than two decades across three coaching staffs and three Rose Bowls.

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